If you would like to find out more about Lauren Child, you can find her website here Support your local indie bookshop and grab your copy here
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Firstly, thank you to Anderson Press for sending me this. Phil Earle is one of my favourite authors! This story is set in 1941 in a city during the bombing raids of World War II. City upon city are being turned to rubble and children are being evacuated to a safer place in the countryside. That is all except Joseph Palmer who arrives in the city to be taken in by a stranger. A stranger who doesn’t seem to want him or care for him. She is trying to keep her family business , a zoo, from crumbling within and its residence from starving. One such resident is Adonis, a silverback gorilla. Joseph realises that not only does the woman he now lives with holds so many secrets but that there is also something more about this gorilla than first meets the eye. This book is gripping from the very first page and was very hard to put down. The characters are real and engaging (but not always instantly likeable). The situations and issues are hard and fast but with time for the reader to try and fully comprehend what might be going on inside these character’s heads. What I liked most about this book is that it left many things unsaid and didn’t tie everything up in the end. There were still questions that were left unanswered and relationships left unexplored. This book is so powerful and evokes all the mayhem, worry and panadamodium that surrounded the blitz at its height so much that you can almost taste the acrid smoke left over by a bombing raid. Read this if you like: heart wrenching stories full of passion, stubborn but likeable characters and a book that will leave you thinking about it way after you put it down. Alfie Blackstack has his world turned upside down when he has to move from London into a village in the middle of nowhere called Little Snoddington to go and live with two aunts he hardly remembers. Alfie doesn't like adventure. He is unsure of everything. And there is something strange about his aunts. And the village. And the shop owned by the mysterious Mr Fingerhut. And the local teashop. And if that isn't enough the circus comes to town and Alfie discovers that perhaps adventures aren't something to be scared of. I really loved this book and fell in love with its batty array of characters. I am a particular fan of Rafferty (and I now want a cat just like him). The story picks up in pace as the plot unfurls and before you know it you've devoured half the book! I have also decided that I want a library ghost. It seems like a good thing to have! I also really hope that there are more stories to follow as Alfie and Calypso are such a great team. Perfect if you like: magic, crazy aunts, witches Familiars, high thrill circus acts and finding your best friend. Alice Tod Hunter Moon lives with her Dad and her mysterious Aunt in a fishing village where they have lived a quiet life away from the hustle and bustle. But everything changes when Tod's Dad fails to return from a fishing trip and she is taken into care by her Aunt. Not everything is what it seems and Tod must follow her instincts and try to find out what is happening. This book is magical and fantastic and, if you are a fan of the Sepitimus Heap books then you will simply love this. Not only do characters that you have met in the mentioned series but it doesn't matter if you know nothing at all about them either. The book is beautifully written with lovable characters and fast paced action. Recommended for aged 9+ Read if you like: mythical creatures, boat chases, magical powers, scary aunts and fantasy worlds. Book Review for Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson reinvented with doddles by Jack Noel (published by Egmont) This children’s classic should be the top of everybody’s must-read pile. This new interrelation of the much-loved story of Jim Hawkins who ends up going joining a mysterious crew and ends up sailing the seven seas looking for a long lost treasure. This new version is witty but keeps very much to the plot and language of the original Stevenson tale. The cartoons are laugh-out-loud funny but without dumbing down any of the content. For children that are perhaps a little reluctant to tackle the classics this is a super introduction to them as well. This is as fast paced as a comic book (in a fetching hue of blue, black and white) which will keep readers engaged for hours. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and will be recommending it to readers aged 9+ Great for fans who love pictures as well as writing, pirates, lost treasure and talking parrots There are not many certainties in life but I simply knew that the last book in the Cursebreaker trilogy ' A Vow so bold and deadly' by Brigid Kemmerer was going to be worth the wait. The previous book had left the reader on a knife edge between the warring factions of Emberfall and Syll Swallow and the cataclysmic split between Grey and Rhen. I don't want to give anything away as there are so many twists, turns and heart stopping moments that I don't want to spoil it for anyone (particularly anyone who has fallen for any of the beautifully constructed characters that Kemmerer uses to tell the story through). The story is fast paced and an absolute page turner. I devoured this book in a matter of days and I recommend this book to anyone that loves adventure with a touch of romance and a sprinkling of magic! If you'd like to know about the author, click here Support your local bookshop and buy a copy here
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